‘Through God, anything is possible,’ he says
By Jeff Kurowski | For On Mission
OSHKOSH — When Cameron Cullen looks back at his first year (2022-2023) as a collegiate cross country and track and field athlete at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, he recalls the struggles he experienced keeping things in perspective.
“I would get so wrapped up in my performances,” said Cullen, now in his third year for the Titans. “The way I ran would determine my week until the next race, the next time to prove myself.”
“These past couple years, I really found my identity in Christ more than my running,” he reflected. “I’ve been able to free myself. As long as I perform in a way that makes God happy, that’s what’s most important.”
Cullen’s achievements include advancing to the NCAA Division III Championship cross country meet in 2023.
He is currently competing in the 1,500 meters and 5k on the track. He said his primary goal this spring is to qualify for the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) track and field meet.
Cullen said he turns to prayer as a way to prepare for his meets. The cross country team would form a prayer circle and he prays individually before the start of his track events.
“Ten minutes before my race, I find a little quiet space, take a knee and say a prayer for a couple minutes,” he said. When the race is about to begin, “I do the sign of the cross and point up (to the sky).”
Matthew 19:26 is among Cullen’s favorite Scripture passages, he said.
“Through God, anything is possible,” he said. “I remind myself anytime it gets challenging that if I just put my faith in the Lord that I will be able to get the results I want or, even if it’s not the result I want, it will be the result that (God) wants for me. I try just to follow and trust in his path.”
Cullen credits the foundation of his Catholic faith to his parents, James and Judy Cullen, members of Holy Rosary Parish in Kewaunee.
“We attended Mass every weekend and I went to Catholic grade school (Holy Rosary), which was great,” he said. “We (along with older brother, James, and younger brother, Christopher) were altar servers. Then we became lectors. It set me up with a really good base. When you’re growing up you sometimes go through the motions (with your faith), but I now realize how important it is in my life.”
Cullen became involved in a Bible study with athlete groups at UW-Oshkosh. Last year, the distance runners broke off into their own ecumenical Bible study group, which meets each week. A weekly theme is selected and Cullen said he usually alternates leading the group with a teammate.
“A couple weeks ago I led when we talked about the Ten Commandments,” he said. “We broke down each one a little bit further. We dug into basic passages of each commandment. We kind of jump all over the place in Scripture depending on the message.”
The Bible study also helps build strong relationships, said Cullen.
“It’s good learning more about each other. When you talk about faith, it allows you to know about each other’s lives, how everyone grew up, what are their strengths, what are their weaknesses,” he said. “It allows you to be a better teammate both in running and outside of the team.”
Cullen attends the 7:07 p.m. Mass on Sundays at Reeve Memorial Union, which is offered by Titan Catholics. He said he is also deepening his faith through tackling the task of reading the New Testament in one year.
He is a rehabilitation science major at UW-Oshkosh and plans to go on to graduate school to become a physical therapist.
Cullen said his career path was inspired by his personal experience.
“I suffered an injury at the end of high school. I went and saw a physical therapist,” he said. “Seeing how he was able to get me back to full health led me to decide to be a rehab health major — being able to help people in that way would be a really cool thing.”
Cullen is a junior academically, but has sophomore status in track due to missing time because of injury.
Distance running is a family tradition.
James, who is now in graduate school in Missouri, was a cross country and track and field athlete at St. Norbert College in De Pere. Christopher is in his first year competing for the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
Being the middle brother, Cullen was high school teammates with both of his brothers.
“We were competitive, but we supported each other,” he said. “We make sure we hold each other accountable (as people of faith) to make sure we see each other in heaven.”
Cullen, who also plans to compete in the steeplechase at a meet this season, said he will continue to live out his faith and is comfortable sharing it with others.
“I grew in my faith and in my confidence to where I don’t worry about what others think of me,” he said. “If I’m doing what the Lord finds good, it doesn’t matter if other people are judging me. That’s the main thing.”